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Slow mail delivery hurts medication access: Study
Maya Goldman, Axios, Dec. 9
Mail delivery slowdowns could leave people with chronic illnesses without their needed medications, according to a new report. A plan meant to improve the U.S. Postal Service is consolidating mail processing into regional hubs. As a result, many local post offices are moving to a single daily collection schedule. The report found that people in rural areas will likely be most affected, as they live far from a pharmacy, rely heavily on mail-order prescriptions, and live in areas affected by the USPS consolidation plan. Research has shown that prescription delivery improves the odds that people stay on their medication, making the postal system a key part of the country’s public health infrastructure.
Even as SNAP resumes, new work rules threaten access for years to come
Renuka Rayasam, Katheryn Houghton, and Samantha Liss, KFF Health News, Dec. 3
Alejandro Santillan-Garcia worries that he will soon lose access to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. The 20-year-old is among the 42 million people in the U.S. who rely on the program to help them buy food. He began receiving benefits after aging out of the foster care system, which he entered as an infant. Due to changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Santillan-Garcia and other adults may be required to prove that they are working, volunteering, or studying in order to receive benefits. People subject to these work requirements can lose access to benefits for three years if they go three months without documenting working hours. Anti-hunger advocates fear the changes, and confusion about the new requirements, will increase the number of people in the U.S. experiencing hunger.
CT joins national push to open access to million-dollar sickle cell gene therapies through Medicaid
Cris Villalonga-Vivoni, NewsTimes, Dec. 6
Recent developments in cell and gene therapy have created life-changing treatment for people with sickle cell disease. However, treatment remains inaccessible for many because of its seven-figure price tag. Connecticut is hoping to help change that by joining 33 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico, to make the therapy available through Medicaid. An estimated 100,000 people in the U.S. have sickle cell disease, and more than 90% of those affected are Black. Fewer than 100 people across the country have undergone gene therapy for the disease.
Connecticut’s new slots for autism services sit empty, even as hundreds of families wait for help
Sujata Srinivasan and Maysoon Khan, Connecticut Public Radio, Dec. 4
Karen Kosminoff is a single mother who juggles working full-time with household chores, caring for a pet, and serving as the caretaker for her 18-year-old autistic son, Keighan. She believes her son could be much more independent if he had more support. For 10 years, Keighan’s name has sat on a waitlist for a program supported by Medicaid that provides the type of services he would need to build independence. Connecticut lawmakers tried to fix the problem by increasing the number of available slots for the program, but many of those slots go unfilled. That is due in part to short-staffing at the Department of Social Services, which doesn’t have enough case managers to run the program.
Former YNHH janitor returns, as med student
Lisa Reisman, New Haven Independent, Dec. 5
While working as a janitor at Yale New Haven Hospital, Shay Taylor was also dealing with her mother’s health issues that kept her in and out of the emergency room. Doctors didn’t seem to take her mother’s symptoms seriously, and it wasn’t until Taylor emailed Yale New Haven’s then-CEO that her mother finally received care. During her research, Taylor found her mother’s situation was not uncommon. “I read all these studies about how doctors don’t hear Black women or see their pain,” she said. “I wanted to be in a position to help people like my mom.” With the support of a mentorship program, Taylor went on to attend Howard University College of Medicine and is applying for a residency in anesthesiology, hoping to match with Yale.